Mars Had Liquid Water for One Billion Years Longer Than Previously Thought

The presence of liquid water on the surface of Mars is much later than scientists previously thought. According to the Christian Science Monitor, based on a new study, a large number of lakes formed on the surface of Mars between two to three billion years ago. This new research, the results of which will soon be published in the scientific journal Planet, was conducted by a group of scientists from the American space agency, NASA. Thus, not only did liquid water remain after the magnetic field of this planet disappeared, but the duration of microbial life on Mars was much longer and later than previously believed. Dr. Sharon Wilson from the Smithsonian Research Center in Washington and one of the NASA researchers states: "We discovered valleys that brought water to these lakes. We found the beds of multiple lakes that were filled and overflowing with water. This means that a significant amount of water existed on the surface of Mars at that time." According to Science Alert, scientists examined the craters on the surface of Mars using images transmitted by the probes to Earth and found that the formation period of these lakes dates back to two to three billion years ago. This date is much later than what was previously thought to be the "warm and wet" period of Mars. Based on the findings of these scientists, these lakes lasted one billion years longer than previously thought on Mars. Initially, scientists believed that water existed on Mars only for a short period and mostly underground. However, after the probes reached the orbit of this planet, it became clear that Mars had retained abundant water on its surface for a long period. This new research indicates that the lakes on Mars were filled with water from melting mountain ice. Although it is still unclear what caused the melting of snow and ice on Mars's mountains, more importantly than the discoveries regarding the history of the lakes on Mars is the possibility of microbial life on this planet. Now that it has been established that the possibility of life on Mars may be much closer than previously thought, future research regarding the search for traces of life on this planet will change.